TOP STORIES
AT&T POSTS HIGHER REVENUE
AT&T said its first-quarter profit dropped slightly to $3.65
billion, or 70c a share, though the telecommunication giant added
more wireless subscribers. Its adjusted profit climbed to 71c a
share and revenue grew to $32.5 billion.
U.S. STOCKS END HIGHER
Big pharmaceutical deals and strong quarterly results pushed the
S&P 500 higher for a sixth straight day and pulled the other
indexes closer to positive territory for the year. The Dow
industrials advanced 65 points to 16514.
NOVARTIS IN DEALS WORTH $25 BILLION
Novartis said it will acquire the oncology unit of
GlaxoSmithKline for about $14.5 billion and sell its vaccines unit
to GSK for $5.25 billion. Novartis also said it is selling its
animal health unit to Eli Lilly for around $5.4 billion.
VALEANT, ACKMAN PROPOSE ALLERGAN DEAL
Activist investor William Ackman and Valeant Pharmaceuticals
revealed their offer to acquire Allergan, valuing the maker of the
wrinkle fighter Botox at about $46 billion. Allergan shares rose
15%.
GILEAD SCIENCES' RESULTS BOOSTED BY HEPATITIS C DRUG
Gilead Sciences said sales of its new treatment for hepatitis C
infections soared in the first quarter as the company posted a
profit of $2.23 billion and per-share earnings jumped to $1.33.
AMGEN PROFIT FALLS 25%
Amgen said its first-quarter earnings fell 25% to $1.07 billion,
or $1.40 a share on higher costs that masked the biopharmaceutical
company's revenue growth. Revenue increased 6.7% to $4.52
billion.
DISCOVER PROFIT SLIPS BUT STILL BEATS ESTIMATES
Discover Financial Services said its first-quarter profit
slipped 6.2% to $618 million, or $1.31 a share, as the credit-card
company recorded higher expenses, masking an increase in total loan
growth.
CITIGROUP SHAREHOLDERS APPROVE LEADERS' PAY
Citigroup shareholders voted to approve the pay packages for the
bank's top executives, giving the company's management a shot of
confidence in a year in which it has struggled to stay in the good
graces of regulators and investors.
COMCAST 1Q PROFIT RISES 30%
Comcast earned $1.87 billion, or 71c a share, as it continued to
add video subscribers and saw strong growth in its NBCUniversal
entertainment arm, thanks to the Winter Olympics. Comcast's Class A
shares rose 2%.
SUPREME COURT CONFLICTED ON AEREO SERVICE
Supreme Court justices expressed unease with online-video
startup Aereo, but they also voiced concerns about the consequences
of ruling for the broadcasters that are challenging the legality of
the service.
GREENLIGHT CAPITAL LOSES 1.5% IN 1ST QUARTER
David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital lost 1.5% in the first
quarter, the New York hedge fund said in an investor letter, in
which it warned about "our second tech bubble in 15 years."
======= DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARIES =======
The Wall Street Journal
FED LOOKS LIKELY TO STICK TO POLICY PATH
Fed officials are on track to reduce their monthly bond buying
to $45 billion and stick with a communications approach that leaves
investors with a little uncertainty about when the central bank
will start raising rates, Jon Hilsenrath writes.
Analysis
WAVE OF PHARMA M&A COULD JUMP-START ANOTHER
The flurry of deal news in the health-products industry could
touch off a wave of more activity as companies take stock of a
changing landscape and seek to stay ahead of it.